Tailgaters Beware…Prices Of Beer Going Up?

Surfing the web for something to write about this morning and I cam across an article from a website called “Digital City”.  Now, normally I don’t put much stock into some websites, but an article by the article written by Sean Madden caught my attention.  Are the prices of beer really going up?

It makes sense on the surface.  The United States already taxes the hell out of cigarrettes, beer, wine, and just about everything else so raising the taxes on alcohol really makes sense.  Especially when you figure in the money dolled out to save GM…snicker…and of course bail out the credit card companies that just tried to raise my interest rates.  Oh wait, I don’t like talking about politics…let me step down off this soapbox.

Where was I?  Ah yes, beer prices.  It has become a staple for sports enthusiasts.  Beer and liquor at tailgate parties, beer and liquor at home parties, beer and liquor at bars.  Not just on NFL Sundays but NBA finals, MLB games, college football games, NASCAR, Hockey…oh who the hell am I kidding…wherever there is a get together you can normally find beer.

According to the article, the Government is looking to find a way to increase their funding to pay for healthcare in the States, specifically those that can’t afford healthcare…like say illegal immigrants and such.  Damn soap box…climb back down.

“Take off” across the border into Canada and you will find that health care in the Great White North doesn’t cost the citizens a dime…from their checks.  However, gas prices are a lot more expensive and already smokers and beer drinkers are paying huge amounts to get their party supplies.  So it’s not likely that you will find much sympathy from them…and rightly so.  40 dollars for a case of beer?  Think about that before you “wine” about it.

"Madden says that the increases could be slated like this:  “Congress wants to increase tax on beer by 145 percent. This means you might be spending an extra $3 for a case. It doesn’t stop there, with a 20 percent increase in hard liquor sales. Maybe the hardest hit is the wine drinkers. Wine sales would increase by 233 percent. Get ready to shell out an extra $7 for a case of wine.”"

He cites an article that was updated on the Stock report website “Morningstar”.  Congress wants to fix the health care industry and reform the way it operates…and we all know that the Government is very good at “fixing” things.

Don’t worry though if you feel left out because you don’t drink beer, wine, or any other alcohol.  The Feds don’t want to leave you out of their golden plan.  The “Health Bill” also will affect the sales of soda or pop depending on your regional dialect.  So your really bad Pepsi habit will take a hit as well.

You know, if this truly is going to be a “Health Bill” then maybe they should tax the hell out of say…Oreo cookies and Krispee Kream donuts too.  Maybe they should tax the hell out of anything that contributes to the obesity that plagues this country.  That’s a health risk as well and sometimes it’s more of an expense.  High-blood pressure, diabetes, liver and kidny problems, mental stress.  It’s all the same.  The only difference is that you don’t read about an obese person killing another driver on the freeway after a game because they were eating an egg-roll.

If this does indeed pass, and it likely will, the parking lot tailgaters will have spent more on their beer cases, liquors, and wine every Sunday.  Inside the stadium, the prices will start to rise as well.  Consider that patrons already pay around 6-8 dollars for a beer at a sporting event and I have heard it to be higher and some functions.  When the vendors begin being taxed more that money will have to be made up from somewhere…yep…you.

The Miami Dolphins announced a few ago that the stadium will now be called “Landshark Stadium” for the duration of the 2009/2010 season.  With these new tax proposals, it makes you wonder if anyone will be able to afford the hike in beer sales at the facility.  20 bucks for parking, 100 bucks or more for tickets, the increasing prices in gasoline…again!, 5 dollar hotdogs, 6 dollar programs, yep, another pinch is coming.

Wow…the off-season really is slow these days!